Rajganj, 10th July: Two smugglers along with ivory were arrested after a team of North Bengal Special Task Force of the Forest Department carried out the operation in Mongpong under Kalimpong subdivision, on Thursday.
The arrested have been identified as Shobha Tamang and Som Tshering Tamang. Both are residents of Darjeeling.
Task Force Chief Sanjoy Dutta said that based on a tip-off, the team carried out a special operation in the area and arrested the duo. Ivory weighing 500 grams was recovered from them. Apart from this, ATM cards of several banks including a vehicle, foreign currency were also seized from their possession.
Sanjoy Dutta further stated that during the investigation, they learned that one of these smugglers was associated with an international smuggling gang. They smuggled all kinds of wildlife.
As per the information, the duo had conspired to smuggle the seized ivory to Nepal. But were successfully arrested before committing the crime. The Task Force Chief further informed that the arrested will be taken in remand after being produced before the Jalpaiguri court.